When a Fast May Be the Answer

The first time I did a fast, it was at the urging of my best friend, who wanted to do a three day liquid diet fast. While I was down to join her, three days was out of the question. We’re talking about a girl who thrives on snacking no less than 8-15 times a day.?

Eventually, we agreed on a 24 hour liquid-only fast and it was great! I felt proud of myself for accomplishing such a feat.?

With one fast under my belt, I was ready for more.?

A few months later, I began to feel as though I needed a breakthrough in a certain area of my life, but I had no idea what to do about it..?

Then, as if God was speaking directly to me (which, of course, He was), one of the podcasts I was listening to was talking about fasting for the purpose of receiving a breakthrough. What! This was definitely something I needed to do.?

The host shared all kinds of ideas for different types of fasts, which excited me because I had always thought of fasting as giving up food entirely, but now I realized that was just one of many options!

Let’s see, there’s intermittent fasting, the Daniel fast, technology fast, favorite thing fast, one day, three day, or multi-day fast of whatever you want, however you want. The important thing is to decide the intent and purpose of your fast and to go from there.?

After praying about it (which I highly recommend), I decided I would do a three day fast where I would only eat one meal (dinner) each day.?

It went great and while I can’t say I got the breakthrough I was hoping for during that three day period, I did gain some clarity about a few other things in my life. That was definitely helpful. Beyond that, it felt good to know that I could challenge myself to be more disciplined, tuned in, and creative when I needed to be.

Shortly after this fast, I did a 30 day Instagram fast. It was inspired by the book Digital Minimalism, which promotes a minimal and meaningful lifestyle. Don’t you love the sound of that??

Again, it went well, I felt great, and it gave me some needed time and space to think about more important things.?

Currently, I’m on day 19 of a 40 day sugar fast. That’s not entirely true- I’m only really cutting out stuff like donuts, pies, and banana bread, which was the thing that inspired this fast.?

You see, on an ordinary Friday evening not too long ago, I went out to grab some things from the grocery store. And there on the shelf, staring me down, was fresh baked banana bread. So, I bought it. By the next day, the entire loaf was gone.?

Gone.?

Just like that.?

And here we are, talking about fasts.?

Is there something in your life causing you to feel frustrated, overwhelmed, confused? Are you in need of a breakthrough? Remember, a breakthrough doesn't need to be a big awakening. Like me, maybe you get a few micro-breakthroughs in the form of clarity about certain things in your life.?

But, maybe you do have the big breakthrough you are hoping for.?

Either way, a fast could be the way.?

I would look at the things that seem to consume your time, focus, or energy, and consider fasting from those things in order to focus on your goals and priorities.?

You just never know what will be revealed through this time.?

Do some research, be intentional, and take action.?

Cheers to whatever fast you decide on and the revelations that will surely come!